Universal Hub - All Boston, all the time

Why a grasshopper sits atop Faneuil Hall

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:42:46 +0000

J.L. Bell gets to the bottom of the issue.

Thieves continue cutting air bags out of South Boston cars like there's no tomorrow

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:11:11 +0000

Boston Police report that between 10 p.m. on Sunday and 7 a.m. on Monday, seven cars had their windows smashed and their air bags removed, on A, H and P streets and at E Street and W 7th and O Street and E 1st. This time, the thieves concentrated on Nissan Sentras, Acuras and Honda Odysseys.

Thieves sell them at a discount to auto-repair shops, who charge customers full price to replace stolen air bags.

Earlier:
Thieves target airbags in Acura SUVs in South Boston.

Schilling strikes out

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 21:34:46 +0000

Lays off entire staff.

Transformer fire at Moakley Courthouse

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:33:31 +0000

Updated.

A basement transformer fire forced the evacuation of the Moakley Courthouse this afternoon but caused no injuries.

The fire, reported around 4:15 p.m., went to a second alarm when the Boston Fire Department called in extra crews to evacuate courthouse workers.

Firefighters were unable to enter the transformer room for nearly an hour as they waited for NStar workers to arrive and shut off the power.

5/24/12 - 4:15 pm

Outbreak of break-ins in Roslindale, West Roxbury

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:31:33 +0000

A skyrocketing burglary rate across Roslindale and West Roxbury has police asking residents to watch out for their neighbors' homes during the day.

District E-5 reports a series of mostly daytime residential break-ins across the two neighborhoods dating back to January, one in which somebody apparently used a crowbar to break open the front door.

Residences on Cornell Street in Roslindale and Temple, Salman and Bellevue streets in West Roxbury are among those hit, police say. Although most have been during the day, police say some have occurred in the evening when residents were not at home.

Latest stats from BPD show a 112% increase in break-ins in E-5 so far this year, compared to the same period last year - from 43 to 91 through May 21.

Police are urging residents who are at home during the day to watch out for their neighbors' homes and report anybody who doesn't seem to belong, for example, people going from door to door or looking into cars or houses.

School superintendent vows no repeat of busing nightmares next year

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 19:43:08 +0000

School Superintendent Carol Johnson has released details of plans to ensure more students get to school on time in the coming school year.

For starters, BPS has already started mapping out bus routes for the fall, rather than waiting until later in the summer. BPS blamed new routing software for a busing crisis that saw hundreds of students getting to school seriously late, if their buses showed up at all.

Part of the planning process will involve making sure drivers actually have enough time to get from one stop to the next.

Also, transportation staff underwent customer-service training, more operators will be brought on in peak hours to actually talk to parents wondering where their kids are and the whole system has been tied into the Mayor's Hotline call-tracking system.

Also, BPS has declared June as BPS Bus Driver Appreciation Month. Parents and students will be asked to write letters of appreciation to their bus drivers, who work for a contractor named First Student. BPS will soon ask for bids to run its buses when First Student's contract expires next year.

Allston bar gets permission to stay open until 2, just like the other bars

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 19:12:07 +0000

The Boston Licensing Board today gave the Avenue Bar and Grill on Comm. Ave. permission to extend its closing time from 1 to 2 a.m.

Some residents of a neighboring condo building objected, as did the offices of the mayor and City Councilor Mark Ciommo, but the board agreed with owner Douglas Bacon that he's run a fine operation with no problems since he bought the place a year ago and that he deserves to offer service as late as other nearby establishments for customers getting off late shifts. Bacon told the board he would serve food right until closing.

Citizen complaint of the day: The tow driver can probably read, he just chose not to

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 16:08:38 +0000

An irate citizen reports from Mt. Ida Road in Dorchester:

This morning I parked under a sign that said I would be towed on the 1st and 3rd Thursday. It is the 4th Thursday. I came out to see my car being pulled onto a flatbed truck. The 'supervisor' driving a public works truck with license plate number MB 2278 said he could not cancel my ticket and that I had to dispute it. He also said "Life isn't perfect". They lowered my car off the flatbed truck and quickly drove away. This is the second time the signs on my street have been wrong. Please fix.

Kendall Square pulls a Back Bay

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 15:20:37 +0000

Power out. Cambridge Police tweet they are diverting cars away from the area at Third and Charles, Third and Binney and Main and Ames.

Homeless man attacked on pier near the Zakim; police seek witnesses

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 15:10:35 +0000

A homeless man found with a serious head injury Monday at the Paul Revere Park fishing pier under the Charlestown Bridge may have been attacked there Sunday night.

Authorities are looking for people who may have been in the park and seen anything, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports:

Because the spot is popular with people walking their dogs or fishing in the harbor, authorities are asking anyone who may have been in the area on Sunday evening to come forward with information, no matter how minor or peripheral it might seem. Specifically, they hope someone may have seen a person or persons in the area of the pier on the evening or night of May 20.

Possible witnesses can contact State Police detectives - investigating because the park is state owned - at 617-727-8817, or by calling 911 on a cellphone.

Orange Line riders north of Boston to face two years of periodic weekend, night bus service

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 14:32:11 +0000

South End Patch reports on impending bustitution north of the city to let the MBTA build the new Assembly Square stop in peace. There's no set schedule yet for the "diversions," but the T says what will start out as sporadic shutdowns will grow more frequent as the station progresses.

BFD battles Back Bay blaze

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:56:49 +0000

Inside the apartment. Photo by BFD.

Boston firefighters made short work of a fire at 321 Commonwealth Ave., reported around 9:30 a.m. The Boston Fire Department reports the fire broke out on the second floor of a five-story building.

The department says the fire, which did an estimated $100,000 in damage, started with a kitchen short circuit.

5/24/12 - 9:30 am

How about a discount Nordstrom on Boylston Street?

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:51:59 +0000

The Globe reports the chain is looking at the old Filene's Basement location on Boylston Street for a Nordstrom Rack.

White guy in scally cap sought for South Boston bank robbery

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 12:07:52 +0000

The FBI's Bank Robbery Task Force reports it's looking for a guy who walked into the Eastern Bank, 470 W. Broadway, on Monday morning and demanded money, which he got.

He's described as white, 5'10" with a thin build, about 25. In addition to a scally cap, he wore a black UnderArmour hoody and jeans with an emblem on back.

There's a reward for information leading to his capture. Drop a quarter to the task force at 617-680-4525.

In this race, volunteers don't hand you water - they douse you in dye

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 12:06:57 +0000

Participants in the Boston Color Me Rad 5K race will start with white T-shirts and clean faces. By the end, competitors will be covered in powdered dye:

If you're allergic to the metric system, corn starch, or unbridled joy, you'd probably be more comfortable in hospice care than at the starting blocks of this color-filled 5k.

It's July 15 at the South Shore Plaza. Yeah, in Braintree, which one presumes just doesn't have the same pull as "Boston."

Soon the sterilization of Harvard Square could be complete: Patio tables and mood lighting proposed for the Pit

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 11:39:08 +0000

The Crimson reports on some ambitious plans for the land behind the Out of Town News stand and the T stop: A complete overhaul of the Pit that would feature patio tables and chairs, stadium seating around it, LED floor lights and a giant flat-screen TV. Bonus: The plan would turn the Out of Town News kiosk into "a glass-walled information center with interactive features."

Cambridge journalist to local businesses: No more Mr. Nice Guy

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 11:10:41 +0000

Mark Levy at Cambridge Day puts Cambridge businesses on record: If you put a giant "Going Out of Business" sale in your window, he's going to write about it, even if you ask him not to. He's tired of getting scooped on stories he knew about first.

The New Yorker abroad's eternal question: Where to get good bagels around here?

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 03:39:17 +0000

Sooner or later, every single New Yorker who moves up here does what Tara Vuono did and ask:

Best bagels in/around Boston? (from an ex-NYer, and yes I know it's cliche to miss the bagels and pizza)

Remember our fallen soldiers

adamg — Thu, 24 May 2012 02:20:20 +0000

Neil the roving UHub photographer captured some of the 33,000 flags planted in the Common to commemorate Massachusetts servicemen and women who've died in the line of duty since the Civil War.

Man gets 2 1/2 years for fatally shooting former friend who was beating him in the head with a padlock

adamg — Wed, 23 May 2012 20:43:46 +0000

Nhu Nguyen, 20, pleaded guilty today to killing Derek Matulina at the Savin Hill Red Line stop on May 11, 2011.